In transporting electrical power, sockets are equipped by wide variety of electronic devices. As the use of electronic devices continues to increase, recent trends keep indicating that the products in demand are developed towards safety, flexibility in customization, in addition to mass-production. Sockets as a major component in the electronic device couldn't be any exception to the same.
FIG. 1 is an exploded view schematically showing a conventional socket and electronic device structure. As shown in FIG. 1, there is a gap 142 formed between a first ring 141 extended from a socket body 14 and a second ring 143 extended from the same. An opening 13 is formed when an upper casing 11 and a lower casing 12 are combined into one assembled casing. In fabricating, the opening 13 is configured to accommodate the socket body 14 and insert the assembled casing into the gap 142. Since the assembled casing is clamped by the first ring 141 and the second ring 143 of the socket body 14, the socket body 14 can be integrated with the electronic device 1. It is to be understood that the socket could be placed in support of the assembled casing, and the traditional solution could prevent the socket body 14 from retreating into the assembled casing or escaping from the electronic device 1. Notwithstanding the advantage, the use of sockets as described above presents several challenges.
It is to be understood that sockets within an electronic device in use will frequently receive stresses from the repetition of push and pull by end users. The task the conventional way to ensure this part is made difficult when the socket body 14 is mainly supported by a pretty narrow margin, where is clamped by its rings 141, 143, on the assembled casing adjacent to the opening 13. Besides, the assembled casing in use is expected to be struck by any kind of outside forces, and over time the casing structure will become frail due to the aging of itself. As a result, supports from the assembled casing in securing the socket body 14 to the electronic device 1 remains unreliable. In addition, the socket body 14 in fabricating has to be placed between the two casings 11, 12 which form the opening 13 according to the prior art. This inherent limitation on layout arrangement is troublesome. As a result, compromises and tradeoffs in practical design are often required.
Further, the socket body 14 is normally tailed with and connected to certain electrical circuitry of the electronic device 1. According to the prior art, the connecting points might become loose due to an unstable socket body 14 in assembling. But the socket body 14 is liable to be unstably placed until the completion of the assembly of the two casings 11, 12. While the socket body 14 has been in position, all components in the electronic device will be sealed by the two casings 11, 12 and out of inspection. For ascertaining, the assembled casing thus has to be separated, and the socket body is left unstably again. Accordingly, it makes the assembly work complicated and require additional effort in time and work for fabricating and inspecting. After those, the production quality still remains questionable.
Apparently, several needs emerge from the prior art. It is desirable to provide a socket that can be firmly secured to electronic devices, flexible in layout arrangement, and of simple construction, easily manufactured and inexpensive production.